Markham startup launches 100-kilowatt fast charger, eyes 1,000 stations across North America
Founded in 2025, AstraX Charging Network opened its first 100-kilowatt DC fast-charging site at 7500 Woodbine Ave. in Markham this spring.
The station features one charging unit capable of delivering up to 100 kW of power, allowing drivers to add approximately 100 kilometres of driving range, in about 10 minutes for roughly $10, depending on the vehicle.
The site was designed with future expansion in mind, with infrastructure already in place to support additional chargers if demand grows.
Frank Lin, founder of AstraX, said usage has increased steadily since the station opened, with monthly charging activity more than doubling in recent months.
For Lin, however, the project is about more than operating charging stations.
He sees electric vehicles as part of a long-term transformation in transportation and believes many of today's concerns about EV adoption are similar to questions people once asked about gasoline-powered vehicles.
“Do you know when gas-powered vehicles broke through one million sales in Canada?” Lin asked. “It was 1927. Almost exactly 100 years ago.”
“What does that mean? It means that 100 years ago, we might have had an interview like this.”
Federal statistics show Canada had more than one million registered motor vehicles by the late 1920s, a period Lin points to as a useful comparison for today's EV industry.
At the time, Lin said, consumers were asking many of the same questions now being raised about electric vehicles — if there would be enough gas stations, if the technology would become mainstream and if the supporting infrastructure could keep pace with demand.
“Today, nobody asks those questions,” he said. “People just expect gas stations to be there.”
Lin believes EV charging infrastructure will eventually reach a similar point.
He also points to Canada's long-term emissions reduction goals as a reason he remains confident in the future of electric vehicles.
The federal government has committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a goal that Lin expects will increase demand for electric vehicles and charging infrastructure in the coming decades.
One area where he believes the industry can improve today is customer experience.
Unlike some charging providers that require users to download an app or create an account before charging, AstraX allows customers to pay using credit cards, QR codes, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
“Some people don't want to install too many apps,” he said.
The company chose Markham for its first site for personal and business reasons. Lin has lived in the city for about 20 years and believes Markham's strong technology sector and growing number of electric vehicle owners make it an ideal location to test new charging infrastructure.
Although AstraX operates a single charging location, Lin said the company is already planning additional projects in Ontario, including North York, London and Ottawa.
“Our plan is to build 1,000 charging stations across Canada and the United States within the next five years,” he said.
For now, the focus remains on proving the concept and creating a reliable charging experience for drivers.
“We are innovators,” Lin said, adding that AstraX's ultimate goal is not simply to operate charging stations, but to help build the infrastructure needed for the next generation of transportation.
